# Child custody after the mother's death in Pakistan: what the Supreme Court did in 2025 > No, the father does not lose all say. When a girl's mother died and two courts kept her with her maternal grandmother, the Islamabad High Court held that "no third party, caregiver or guardian can be appointed a guardian in the stead of a biological parent of the child while the biological parent is alive and not found unfit by the Court", and the girl went to her father (Supreme Court of Pakistan, C.P.L.A. No. 2788 of 2022, para 2). - Topic: Family - Court: Supreme Court of Pakistan - Citation: C.P.L.A. No. 2788 of 2022 - The myth: "Once the mother has died, the father has no say over the child." Verdict: Wrong: the Supreme Court found a third way. - Watch: https://failegal.site/media/child-custody-after-mother-death-pakistan-supreme-court-2025 (video https://failegal.site/media/child-custody-after-mother-death-pakistan-supreme-court-2025/reel.mp4, 1:09) - Published by FAI Legal on 2026-11-06 Then the Supreme Court did not pick a winner. With both sides' consent it sent them to an accredited mediator, and within about a month they agreed on the girl's custody, visits, schooling and how they would cooperate. On 30 June 2025 the Court called the agreement "a model of co-parenting" and said "the emotional wellbeing of a minor cannot be preserved through litigation alone" (paras 6 and 7). ## Key points - A living father cannot simply be replaced: the Islamabad High Court held that a third party cannot be appointed guardian in place of a parent who is alive and not found unfit, and section 19(b) of the Guardians and Wards Act bars the court from appointing a guardian of the person of a minor whose father is living and not unfit. - The Supreme Court did not decide who wins. With the parties' consent it referred the dispute to an accredited mediator under the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act 2017, to finish within one month, and made clear "the Mediator will not give any decision" (para 4). - The settlement covered "custody, visitation, educational arrangements and mechanisms for future cooperation aimed at her welfare", and the Court called it "a model of co-parenting" (para 6). - Mediation needs both sides: the reference came only after the contesting parties gave their consent (para 4). Without agreement, the court decides custody by the welfare of the minor (Guardians and Wards Act, section 17). - The agreement's terms are not public, so this page does not say who the girl lives with now. The Guardian Court was told to draw up a decree in its terms (para 9). ## Child custody after the mother's death: the short answer When a mother dies, her child's custody is not handed to anyone automatically. The Guardian Court decides, guided by the welfare of the minor, and the father remains the child's natural guardian unless a court finds him unfit. In the 2025 case below, two courts kept a girl with her maternal grandmother, the Islamabad High Court gave her to her father, and the Supreme Court closed the case with a co-parenting agreement. People search this as child custody after mother's death, who takes custody of a child after death, custody of child after death of mother in Islam, and maa ki wafat ke baad bachay ki custody. The Supreme Court's order of 30 June 2025 answers it for one family, and the Guardians and Wards Act gives the rules that apply to every family. ## Her mother, her nani, her father: what happened The girl's mother "had died prior to the initiation of the custody battle" between the girl's maternal grandmother and her father (para 1). The father applied under section 25 of the Guardians and Wards Act for permanent custody. The Guardian Court turned it down on 26 October 2020, so the girl's custody stayed with her grandmother, and it fixed a schedule for the father's visits; the appellate court dismissed his appeal on 30 January 2021 (para 1). The father then went to the Islamabad High Court in a writ petition. ## The High Court: no one in a living father's place On 16 June 2022 the High Court set aside both decisions, "holding inter alia that no third party, caregiver or guardian can be appointed a guardian in the stead of a biological parent of the child while the biological parent is alive and not found unfit by the Court to act as the guardian of his or her own child". As a result, the girl's custody was taken from her grandmother by her father (para 2). The rule behind it is section 19(b) of the Guardians and Wards Act, 1890: the court may not appoint or declare a guardian of the person "of a minor whose father is living and is not, in the opinion of the Court, unfit to be guardian of the person of the minor". The grandmother's side took the case to the Supreme Court. ## We checked it in FAI Legal The order is on FAI Legal's Judgment Search, marked as a citation from the court record, with every paragraph open in the judgment reader. The paragraphs quoted on this page are paras 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7 and 9. Sections 17 and 19 of the Guardians and Wards Act are quoted from FAI's Statute Search. We cite the order by the court's own case number and date, and name none of the parties. ## Supreme Court, 2025: no winner, a mediator The petition was first heard on 8 December 2023 and stayed pending "until 14.05.2025 when this Court suggested to the contesting parties to resolve their disputes through a process of mediation", bearing in mind Article 3 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which obliges courts to act in the best interests of children (para 3). After both sides consented, the Court referred the dispute to an accredited mediator and asked for the process to be completed "within a period of one month" (para 4). It worked. The settlement agreement of 17 June 2025 covered "custody, visitation, educational arrangements and mechanisms for future cooperation aimed at her welfare", and the Court said: "This settlement agreement reflects a model of co-parenting" (para 6). In its words, mediation here was "a compassionate effort to shift the narrative from adversarial contestation to mutual understanding", and "the emotional wellbeing of a minor cannot be preserved through litigation alone" (para 7). The petition was disposed of in terms of the agreement, and the Guardian Court was told to draw up a decree in its terms (para 9). ## The catch: both must agree Mediation is a choice, not an order to agree. The Court sent this dispute to a mediator only "After the contesting parties gave their consent", and the mediator's role was limited: "the Mediator will not give any decision" (para 4). If one side refuses, the case goes back to the court. Then the court decides custody by the child's welfare. Under section 17(1) of the Guardians and Wards Act the court shall "be guided by what, consistently with the law to which the minor is subject, appears in the circumstances to be for the welfare of the minor", looking at the child's age, sex and religion, the proposed guardian's character and capacity and nearness of kin, and the child's own preference if old enough. For fathers, our practical advice: keep every visit the court allows, because the bond with the child is part of what the court weighs. ## Find rulings like this on FAI Legal FAI Legal is a website: open failegal.site in your phone's browser, there is nothing to download. Read this order in full on Judgment Search, read sections 17 and 19 of the Guardians and Wards Act in Statute Search, or ask your own question about custody, visits or guardianship, with answers from Pakistan's laws and judgments. Start free. ## The case at a glance - **Facts:** After the minor's mother died, the Guardian Court kept the girl with her maternal grandmother, turned down the father's application for permanent custody and fixed his visits; the appeal failed; the Islamabad High Court set both aside and custody passed to the father; the grandmother's side petitioned the Supreme Court (paras 1 and 2). - **The question:** The custody of a minor girl after her mother's death, between her father and her maternal grandmother (paras 1 to 3). - **What the Court held:** No ruling on the merits: with the parties' consent the dispute was referred to an accredited mediator, a co-parenting settlement was reached, and the petition was disposed of in its terms, the High Court's judgment modified only to the extent of inconsistency (paras 4, 6 and 9). - **Why:** Courts must act in the best interests of children (UNCRC Article 3, para 3); mediation shifts a custody dispute from contest to mutual understanding, and a minor's emotional wellbeing cannot be preserved through litigation alone (para 7). - **Limits:** An order of two judges recording a settlement in one family's case; the guardianship rule it records is the Islamabad High Court's. It does not say who the girl lives with now, and it does not decide custody cases where the parties do not agree. ## In the Court’s words > "was turned down resulting in the minor's custody to remain with her maternal grandmother" (C.P.L.A. No. 2788 of 2022, para 1) > "It was clarified that the Mediator will not give any decision and his role was limited to facilitate the parties in arriving at a settlement." (C.P.L.A. No. 2788 of 2022, para 4) ## The law it relies on - **Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, Section 19(b):** Guardian not to be appointed by the Court in certain cases: nothing in the chapter authorises the court to appoint or declare a guardian of the person "of a minor whose father is living and is not, in the opinion of the Court, unfit to be guardian of the person of the minor". - **Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, Section 17(1):** Matters to be considered by the court in appointing a guardian: the court shall "be guided by what, consistently with the law to which the minor is subject, appears in the circumstances to be for the welfare of the minor". ## What this does not mean - It does not say a father always gets custody when the mother dies. The High Court's holding is about who can be appointed guardian; custody still turns on the child's welfare (section 17). - It is not a Supreme Court ruling on the High Court's reasoning: the petition was disposed of in terms of the settlement, and the High Court's judgment stands except where the settlement differs (para 9). - It does not mean every custody case is sent to mediation: this reference was made with both sides' consent (para 4). - It does not tell you who the girl lives with now: the settlement's terms are not public. - The reel's opening scene, a gate slamming on a father while a grandmother says he has no say, is a drawing of the common claim, not the case's own words. ## Questions people ask ### Who gets custody of a child after the mother's death in Pakistan? No one automatically. The Guardian Court decides by the welfare of the minor (Guardians and Wards Act, section 17). In the 2025 case the Guardian Court first kept the girl with her maternal grandmother, the Islamabad High Court then gave custody to her father, and the Supreme Court recorded a co-parenting settlement (C.P.L.A. No. 2788 of 2022). ### Does the father have rights after the mother dies? Yes. Under section 19(b) of the Guardians and Wards Act a court may not appoint a guardian of the person of a minor whose father is living and is not, in its opinion, unfit. Even while the grandmother had custody, the Guardian Court fixed a visitation schedule for the father (para 1). ### What is custody mediation? A meeting with a trained, neutral mediator who helps both sides reach their own agreement; the mediator does not decide. Here the Supreme Court referred the dispute to an accredited mediator for one month and said the mediator "will not give any decision" (para 4). ### Is a custody mediation agreement legally binding? In this case the Supreme Court disposed of the petition in terms of the signed settlement and told the Guardian Court to draw up a decree in its terms (para 9), so the agreement became a court decree. ### How long did the mediation take? About a month. The Supreme Court suggested mediation on 14 May 2025 and the settlement agreement is dated 17 June 2025 (paras 3 to 6); the petition had been pending since notices were issued on 8 December 2023 (para 3). ### Can the maternal grandmother keep the child? She can be given custody if that is best for the child; here the Guardian Court and the appellate court kept the girl with her. But the High Court held that a third party cannot be appointed guardian in place of a living parent who is not found unfit, and the case ended in a co-parenting settlement. ## Sources - A v. B (names withheld), C.P.L.A. No. 2788 of 2022, Supreme Court of Pakistan, 30 June 2025. A custody dispute between a father and a maternal grandmother referred, with consent, to an accredited mediator; a co-parenting settlement recorded and the petition disposed of in its terms. - Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, Section 19 (text checked in FAI Statute Search, 6 November 2026) (official text: https://pakistancode.gov.pk/english/UY2FqaJw1-apaUY2Fqa-cJc%3D-sg-jjjjjjjjjjjjj) - Guardians and Wards Act, 1890, Section 17 (text checked in FAI Statute Search, 6 November 2026) (official text: https://pakistancode.gov.pk/english/UY2FqaJw1-apaUY2Fqa-cJc%3D-sg-jjjjjjjjjjjjj) ## What the reel says Child custody after the mother's death: does the father lose all say? Maa ki wafat ke baad bachay ki custody: kya ab baap ka koi haq nahi? Wrong. The Supreme Court found a third way. A little girl lost her mother, and her nani (maternal grandmother) kept her. Her father asked for custody: two courts said no, only visits. Then the High Court said that while a parent is alive and not found unfit, no one else can be made the guardian in his place. The girl went to her father, and her nani took it to the Supreme Court. In May 2025 the Supreme Court did not pick a winner. With both sides' consent it sent them to a trained mediator, and within a month they signed an agreement on where she lives, her visits and her school. The Court called it "a model of co-parenting" and said "the emotional wellbeing of a minor cannot be preserved through litigation alone." In a custody case? 1. If both sides are willing, ask the court about mediation. If not, the court decides by what is best for the child. 2. Keep every visit: the court looks at the child's bond with each parent. (Our practical advice.) 3. Talk to a lawyer about your own case. --- Educational legal information, not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts. Speak to a lawyer about your own case. Last checked: 6 November 2026. Review status: Pending advocate review. English: https://failegal.site/media/child-custody-after-mother-death-pakistan-supreme-court-2025 · Urdu: https://failegal.site/media/ur/child-custody-after-mother-death-pakistan-supreme-court-2025 FAI Media is part of FAI Legal (https://failegal.site), research on Pakistani statutes and judgments. Free to watch and read.